The Value of Friends
by MidnightxBluexBlack
Summary: Oneshot. With his mother back in the hospital, Kurama faces depression. Will things brighten when the guys from Team Urameshi come to cheer him up or will he lose himself to despair?


DoE: Greetings. Demon of Evilness bids you all a good day. This is a new fic from yours truly. This is a Oneshot, and there won't be a sequal. So there. Nyah+grins+ Okay, to the point. I wrote this fic as a symbol of my friends. Whenever I'm down, they come, they cheer me up, they make me laugh, and we blow up the world together. So, Friends: This is for you!

**Disclaimer: Demon of Evilness does not own Yu Yu Hakusho. She also, does not own her friends. They hang around her willingly.**

DoE+sighs+ Ain't that the truth...My friends must have the patients of saints...ON TO THE FIC!

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Thin, pale grey clouds masked a bleak, cheerless sky as it gazed down upon the world, its broad face reflecting the inner workings of one demon's heart. A cool breeze ruffled the long, red hair of a single individual who stood alone underneath a sakura tree, the pink blossoms that had once made it so beautiful slowly falling from its once proud branches. He leaned against the smooth, chilled bark of the tree and looked around, barely aware of where he was, his mind muddled by various thoughts and worries.

This individual's name was Kurama, otherwise known as Shuichi Minamino in the Human World, and as Youko Kurama in the Makai. Kurama was a fox demon, though he had been living as a human for the past fifteen years when he had been forced to flee to Ningenkai He had deep, penetrating emerald green eyes that looked as though they could see into your very soul, and long, crimson red hair that matched the color of blood almost perfectly.

His mother had recently been made to return to the hospital. She seemed to have caught some kind of sickness that the doctors had somehow failed to identify. His 'kassan had been struck by a number of dizzy spells as of late, and she often had trouble breathing. Also, she had been running a very high fever and passed out at work a few days ago. She was placed in the hospital shortly afterwards and had been there ever since. Needless to say, he was quite worried.

The only thing he had been able to focus on for the past few days was his mother, and her worsening condition. He had thought that the Forlorn Hope had promised her health and happiness when he had used it, but apparently, that wasn't the case. He was constantly being distracted in school now, wondering how she was feeling that day, contemplating her symptoms over and over, trying to learn the cause of her sickness. He had lost sleep over it, the answer evading him, only to be replaced by ruthless nightmares.

As he sat there, surrounded by the beautiful scenery of the surrounding park, a low murmur of voices from passing humans filling his ears, he began to contemplate this again, and eventually, inevitably, his thought turned to the question of 'what will happen if this illness is not cured?' The fox couldn't help but realize, if her condition did not begin to improve and continued to worsen, then the woman could very well lose her life…He felt ashamed, feeling he had been defeated too easily by a mere virus.

He remained in this condition for what seemed like hours, his inner thoughts spinning in a dark spiral, a cold feeling of helplessness and despair washing over him before a friendly group of voices aroused him from his melancholy state.

"Hey Kurama! Uh…How come you're just sitting there?" a deep, rough voice asked him, curiosity and confusion clearly apparent in it's tone.

The red head looked up upon hearing his name, quickly hiding any characteristic that might have betrayed his previous thoughts and emotions as his face became visible to their eyes, making his expression seem completely clandestine. Kurama blinked, his deep, emerald eyes reflecting a polite sort of puzzlement.

His gaze was met by a tall boy who looked as though he had been beaten by a thug with a big stick. He had bright orange-ish hair and small, dark brown eyes peered down at the fox inquisitively. A long, rather bony face made him what most people would call ugly, but after knowing the teen for as long as he had, Kurama knew that he had a good heart. This was Kazuma Kuwabara, one of the Reikai Tantei that worked for Spirit world.

Beside him stood Yusuke Urameshi, the 'official' Spirit Detective, a slight, pink spot on his cheek implying that someone had just slapped him...It looked very much like Keiko's hand print. He stood even with Kuwabara's shoulders, and he wore a cocky grin, his chocolate brown eyes laughing at some untold joke. His jet black hair was slicked back, as usual, making him look as much the punk he claimed to be. Kurama knew that, while he claimed to be a tough guy, he was an excellent friend to those that didn't make him mad.

Botan, the ferry girl, was also in the group, her vibrant blue hair up in it's usual ponytail. She smiled at Kurama, her amethyst eyes shining in a cheerful greeting as she stood alongside Kuwabara, reaching a little over his shoulder. Kurama knew her to be extremely cheerful, even if a little air-headed, no matter the situation.

Surprising Kurama the most was the presence of Hiei, the fire apparition standing behind Yusuke and Kuwabara. The sullen figure of Hiei only stood about even with Yusuke's shoulders, though his spiked, black hair reached far higher than that. His hair, while jet black, was highlighted by a white starburst. A white headband across his forehead covered his third eye, and his deep, garnet eyes showed no emotion, though they flared with their own fire. Hiei had come to be Kurama's closest companion and friend in the time that he had known him.

"Ah, hello Kuwabara…everyone…I was simply thinking about things; I find the park to be quite relaxing," he replied, answering the redhead's question. He climbed to his feet as he spoke, rising to meet everyone else's gaze. He smiled at his friends. "What brings you here?" he inquired, surprised by their sudden appearance.

Yusuke's grin widened, and his eyes twinkled. "Why else? We heard that you've been down in the dumps lately, so we all came to see you. What's been buggin' ya?" the Spirit Detective explained, his tone of voice warm and sincere. His eyes softened as he scrutinized the fox, looking for anything that might betray his inner emotions, but of course, finding nothing.

Needless to say, Kurama was taken aback. For all of the answers he might have expected from Yusuke, that was probably the last one on his list. He had not told his friends about his mother, as he did not want them to worry or act any differently than they might have normally, and he did nothing that might have clued them in to his worries or concerns. The news had, of course, gotten out at school, but none of them attended Meiou, and he did not understand how Yusuke and the others could have known about his negative mood, even with Hiei's jagan eye.

"Down in the dumps? Who told you that?" the fox inquired, tilting his head to the side in curiosity, his green eyes shining.

"It was Kaito!" Botan said, overly cheerful as always, smiling brightly. "He came and found Yusuke the other day and told him about how something's been bothering you lately! He seemed to be rather concerned!" she informed him matter-of-factly.

"Yeah…You know, Kurama, if anything's bugging you, it's always cool to come and tell us about it. We're here to help you, man. You'd do the same for any of us," Yusuke told him, the sincerity and honesty in his words warming his soul.

"Hn. It's pointless to keep your problems to yourself, fox. After all, you've always told me that it is better to share your problems with those around you instead of bottling them up," Hiei muttered, adding in his own opinion and warming Kurama further.

Kuwabara nodded in agreement. "And don't try telling us that it's nothing or you don't want us to worry about it because we know you better than that. You aren't gonna pull a fast one on us. We'd only worry about you more if you tried to keep whatever this is a secret," he proclaimed. "I the Great Kuwabara will not allow one of my friend to suffer in silence."

Kurama felt genuinely touched, the concern of his friends overwhelming him. He felt as though he had never truly understood the extent of their friendship until that moment, and this new understanding brought a smile to his lips.

"I must admit…I have been preoccupied lately…" he started slowly. "My mother has been sent to the hospital again…It seems that she's come down with some unnamed virus. The doctors haven't been able to help her any more than I myself have managed. They say that her condition is getting worse…If it doesn't stop…If she doesn't begin to improve, she could die. I suppose you could say I'm rather worried…," he finished softly, fading into silence. Having admitted that, he felt much better, almost as if a large weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Botan exclaimed, being the first one to speak up. "I know she hasn't shown up on any of Koenma's lists for new entries into Spirit World…." she mused thoughtfully.

Yusuke smiled. "Yeah. I'm sure it's just a passing thing, Kurama. She'll definitely get better, no doubt about it," he decided reverently.

Kuwabara nodded in agreement. "Definitely! Maybe we can even get Yukina to come by and see if she can help!" he suggested.

"That's an excellent idea, Kuwabara! I'll contact her immediately when I return to Spirit World!" Botan chimed, her smile widening.

"Heheheh. You just wanna spend time with Yukina, you idiot," Yusuke chuckled, his eyes sparkling with amusement at the look on Kuwabara's face. "But it is a good idea," he turned to face Kurama. "See? She'll get better, and even if she doesn't we'll be here for you every step of the way. You can count on us, Kurama."

Botan looked down at her watch and gasped. "Eep! I was supposed to report back to Lord Koenma five minutes ago!" she exclaimed, her oar materializing out of nowhere. "I really must be going! I'll be sure to contact you all when I get a hold of Yukina! Take care!" she said hurriedly, climbing onto the oar. The ferry girl flew off, disappearing in a ray of light.

"We'd better be going now, too," Yusuke stated, looking down at his own watch. "It's time for Kuwabara to get his ass handed to him in Goblin City," he proclaimed eagerly, that cocky grin returning to his face.

"That's what you think Urameshi!" Kuwabara challenged.

They began to walk off, but paused, looking back at Kurama.

"Take care, Kurama," Yusuke called.

"See ya later!" added Kuwabara.

Kurama waved, bidding them goodbye. Once they were out of sight, he looked down at Hiei, a slight smile playing on his lips. "So, you came here willingly?" he teased.

"Hn," the fire apparition replied, agitated. "Don't kid yourself. I only came to make sure you weren't getting distracted," he muttered, flitting off to who knows where.

Kurama smiled to himself, feeling, for the first time in days, completely calm. He no longer had dark, brooding thoughts hovering over him. Finally, he felt as though he could get a good night's rest and look upon tomorrow without fear of what news it might bring.

"Thank you…" he said, his voice barely above a whisper, but filled with gratitude and warmth nonetheless. "Thank you so much…for finally teaching me the true meaning of friendship…"

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DoE: And there you have it. I hope you liked it, cause this one was harder for me to write. I was trying to focus on description more than I normally do. Now that I'm down here, I wanna thank my friends for always being there for me! It means alot! Please R&R. I'd really like some feedback for this one. Creative Critisism and Flames are accepted. Until Next Time! Demon of Evilness, over and out! 


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